Physical comparison Slim vs. original Fat PS3:
The shape is relatively unchanged. We thought Sony shrunk it down by moving the PSU outside the body, like the Xbox 360, but no, it’s still the same. There’s no power brick.

Its power and eject touch buttons are changed to actual buttons (an improvement, I think), and the USB ports are shrunk down to 2. Also gone are any of the card readers. Because of the decreased size, the Slim is much less stable in vertical mode, which explains the $24 stand coming in September. You also can’t twist the PS logo on the front to vertical orientation, like you could the PS3 fat. (more images at bottom)

A good change is definitely the matted finish, but the decreased vents might mean that the slim is quieter and/or cooler. We’ll see once we start playing some games on it.

Audible comparison vs. original PS3:
We tested the two consoles with GT game. While the fans were pretty much the same between the two consoles, the disc drive is noticeably slightly louder on the PS3 Slim. Using a decibel-meter app on the iPhone, the Slim got somewhere between 25-33dB when playing the game, and the PS3 Fat got between 22-30dB. It’s not a huge difference, but you should remember that decibels are logarithmic, so every 3 decibels equals about double the loudness. So if this thing is accurate—which it probably isn’t, since it’s just an iPhone app—that’s about twice as loud. 🙂

No Linux

What’s even worse, you’ll no longer be able to install Linux on the Playstation 3 Slim.

“The new PS3 system will focus on delivering games and other entertainment content, and users will not be able to install other operating systems to the new PS3 system,” Sony writes.

So if you’re into Linux on your PS3, you’d better buy a regular model while they’re still available – and you’d be lucky, because those, too have had their prices slashed to 299USD/299EUR. On a happier note, at least we’ll no longer have to endure the nonsense of people arguing that the PS3 will be the shining beacon of hope for alternative operating systems.

Firmware 3.0

While some of the features are great, most notably the new ‘What’s New’ menus and updated friends list, we cant help but feel slightly disappointed with the update. In most PS3 owner’s eyes, firmware update 3.0 was meant to be the big one, and we all thought that Sony would finally announce in-game voice chat across games.

Sadly though, it was never to be. Yes we like animated themes and an updated trophy system, but its still not a huge update. Maybe it’s just me being too greedy perhaps.

The most prevalent of the changes is a status bar in the top right of the screen, which shows your avatar, your user icon, what you are up to, and a mail icon, in case you have messages waiting.

Changes will make the friends list more friendly, with messages from your friends now appearing in their respective profiles.

The games and video categories of the cross media bar will now feature shortcuts to the PlayStation Store, reflecting downloadable content and related items available.

Premium themes, as seen in the video below, are animated themes that make your PS3 a bit more lively.

The most puzzling update, for me at least, is the new free and premium avatars, which will be showing up in your status bar. What other uses will they have?

Firmware 3.0 will be released on September 1st, according to Sony’s PS3 Slim press release.

Checkout the video –

BRAVIA Sync

It’ll also have a BRAVIA Sync feature that’ll allow you to control the PS3’s XMB with your Sony TV remote as long as they’re connected via HDMI. And the TV will automatically turn off the PS3 when the TV goes off.